I have met a few people that have modified their Prius using a chip to control when the engine kicks on vs battery only. Has anyone heard of any such chips or similar computer based modifications for the HCH II for increasing mileage?

 

Most of the chips I have seen offered for various vehicles were as the saying goes, "Too good to be true." I haven't seen any chip mods for the HCH. Also the HCH does not have an EV only mode.

 

^^^

The HCH II does, but it's very limited

Watch the video

http://world.honda.com/HDTV/news/200...05b/index.html

 

Yeah, that is one thing I wish the HCH would have is EV mode. Maybe they will do that next time with a larger battery. But, I mean there are chips people put in their Corvette to change the fuel mixture, intake patterns, etc, to get more horsepower and efficiency. I would think that there was something out there that could modify Honda's already efficient engine and/or battery/engine cooperation to eak a few more mpg's out of it.

 

Going back to the video, Honda's IMA design does not easily lend itself to an expanded range electric mode because the electric motor and engine are always moving together. What Honda has done to incorporate a quasi-electric mode is lock the valves and shut off the gas flow.

 

Agreed, Chris.
The biggest hindrance to a true EV mode for the Hondas is the rather small electric motor. It's just too small to truly propel the car, and certainly too small to move the car from a dead stop. I wish it had this capability, but mostly because OTHER people expect it to .
The Honda system works perfectly fine as it is, it's just different from the Toyota and Ford systems. And the Toyota/Ford systems ARE better for CITY driving.

 

It might be because I do almost exclusive highway driving, but I am actually glad that the Civic does not have an EV mode.
It seems like when I am able to run in its EV mode, I start the ICE ASAP because it will result in a net loss in mileage when the battery has to recharge and I do not want it to.
Of course this would all be different if there was a PHEV for the Civic...

sorry about being very off topic from the thread

 

After watching the video posted above, the Honda system really is impressive. The fact that it doesn't have an EV mode is just another testament to Honda engineering since it nearly rivals the Prius on mileage without EV capability. I suppose the only improvements that could be made would be to allow even more electric assist with a larger motor or perhaps pair the IMA system with a variant of the i-DTEC diesel engine coming soon.

 

Nominated for silliest question of the month. Next?

 

And boy, does this mode work! If I force this mode, I can get 60+ mpg as opposed to 50 mpg. But yeah, at highway speeds this isn't too helpful unless you're traveling downhill. You lose speed to quick to get much benefit from the glides.